When you least expect it
by kmfc17
Summary: This is a Tony and Ziva story. Is AU and will include most of the characters in the show. Tony is a police detective and Ziva is a damsel in distress, or is she? Please review and let me know what you think.
1. Chapter 1

**_This is a completely AU story about Tony and Ziva because I just love them together._**

**_Tony DiNozzo is an NYPD detective. He's in charge of his own team and they have been working in a big case of smuggling of stolen antiquities property of the Spanish government. He is just about to trap one of the smugglers when a woman gets in his path and ruins his plans. Now the woman is in danger and he is ordered by his superiors to protect her. But is she as innocent as they all think or is she a part of the smugglers plan to get the annoying office DiNozzo off their backs. You'll have to read to find out._**

**_P.S. I don't own any of these characters._**

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Detective DiNozzo was pissed. No, he was beyond pissed. After spending almost five months planning this op and gathering Intel it had all gone to hell as soon as this woman walked into the restaurant. Tony and his team have been assigned to a case of stolen artifacts property of the Spanish government. Said artifacts have been appearing in New York City in the black market and have been selling for millions of dollars. Now he was about to catch one of the big men in the smuggling ring when this Ziva David walked into the restaurant and sat in the table of their mystery seller. It had all gone to hell after that. The man had gotten nervous with the appearance of this woman, who he apparently didn't know in his table and left fast. His men tried to follow him but they lost him in the crowd. Now all he had was this woman who apparently knew nothing.

"Tell me again Ms. David what exactly were you doing in that restaurant" they both sat in an interrogation room at his precinct.

"It's Daveed, detective and we have gone over this already."

She was a beautiful woman, he couldn't deny that and if she would have appeared in his life under different circumstances he knew she could have become another one of his conquests, but this was work and he didn't mess with work. "I am sorry, Daveed. Would you please tell me one more time exactly why you were there?"

"As I have said before detective, I received a phone call from a man saying he had a business proposal"

"What kind of business proposal?"

"My father owns an import and exports company and this man said he was interested in using us to ship his merchandise"

"And what type of merchandise was this?"

"I told you already I don't know. We were supposed to go over the details in the meeting. He specifically told me Tonya Café, 1:30pm table by the window and that is where I went and where you and your dogs attacked me." Ziva was frustrated who did this man thought she was.

"We didn't attack you Ms. Daveed. As I explained before we were in the middle of an operative and you were sitting where our suspect was supposed to sit"

"Well I can tell you I am not your suspect. In fact I believe I have cooperated enough. So you either arrest me now and let me call my lawyer or I demand that you release me this instant"

Tony was furious, and this woman made him more furious. "Wait here a moment. Someone will come get you" he stepped out of the interrogation room and headed to the squad room. "Tell me you got something McGee" McGee was a good detective, he had started in his unit a little over two years ago and even when he wasn't the most effective officer in the field he sure was useful with the computers.

"Well she looks clean"

"I know she looks clean, McObvious. But is she clean?"

"Yeah she's clean. No criminal record, although she has quite a number of speeding tickets. But nothing suspicious"

"Okay, how about this company she says her father owns?"

"TelAviv Imports and Exports. It is a multimillion dollar corporation. Apparently she is the president of the company. She took the position seven months ago when her father had a heart attack after her sister passed away"

Tony felt sorry for her, losing a sister and then you father having a heart attack couldn't be easy "Her father still alive I assume"

"Yeah, but he's under constant care, apparently half of his body is paralyzed caused by the stroke"

"How did the sister die?"

"Car accident"

"How about the call she received, where you able to trace it somewhere?"

"It came from a disposable cell phone; it was bought at a gas station with cash. No cameras"

"Of course we wouldn't be that lucky" he started walking towards his office

"So, do we release her?" asked McGee

"Yeah release her. But warn her not to leave town" he closed his office door and sat on his desk with his head on his hands. He had been so sure that today they were going to make advance with the investigation but luck didn't seem to be working with him. He was almost positive the seller made one of his detectives. He wouldn't be going back to that place now. He was back at square one. He decided to pack up for the day. He had enough of this place for one day. He would go home, watch a good James Bond movie with a beer and pizza and hope that tomorrow would be better.

Just as he was leaving the precinct he saw her entering a dark continental. She looked his way and gave him a disgusted grunt. The woman certainly was a handful. He hoped he never had to see her again.

_3:00 am DiNozzo's apartment_

The incessant ringing of his cell phone woke him up from what was a good sleep. He didn't even look at his caller ID. "DiNozzo"

"DiNozzo, get your ass out of bed and report to the precinct this instant" the voice of his boss Captain Jethro Gibbs made him fully awake.

"Captain, what happened?"

"Ziva David was almost killed tonight that's what happened"

"I'll be there in ten minutes"

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**_Please review. Let me know if I should continue. Thanks_**

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	2. Chapter 2

_**Here is the second chapter. Here we get to see more interaction between Ziva and Tony. I know it might not be exiting enough but these are necessary chapters. Thanks to all who read and a special thanks to all those who reviewed. Please keep reviewing, it let's me know if people are liking the story. Again I don't own any of them. Emjoy the chapter.**_

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He was driving like a maniac, he knew it and yet he didn't stop. He should have sent a couple of uniforms to follow her. He should have expected they would contact her again. But no, DiNozzo, he had been busy trying not to stare into her eyes. Damn it. He hoped she was okay.

He arrived at the precinct exactly ten minutes after hanging up with his boss. The first person he saw was Kate. She was his partner and best friend. They had known each other for about eight years. During the first year they had a little romance but it didn't work and from then on they were the best of friends.

"I didn't think you would be here" he gave her a big grin as they walked into the station.

"Tony, just because I am going out with the boss doesn't mean I get extra privileges" Kate and the Captain had been going out for a few months. Of course Tony knew they had liked each other for a lot longer but the Cap was just too stubborn and so it wasn't until Kate asked him out that their relationship began.

"Took you long enough DiNozzo"

"Sorry Cap., traffic." Tony respected his boss. He was a man of action. "What happened?" Is Ms. David okay?"

"She's fine, but only because her chauffer pushed her out of the way. She was almost run over by a car, and somehow I don't think it was just a coincidence or an accident. Someone tried to kill her. I can only assume this is related to your investigation"

"Cap. We cleared her. It seems she was just there for work and had no idea who these people were"

"Well, they obviously know who she is." Gibbs seemed to be thinking for a possible solution and everyone else was quiet. They all knew not to interrupt his thoughts. "DiNozzo, did the man make anyone in your team"

"Langer was the only one inside the restaurant. If he made anyone it was him. Why?"

"Well it's obvious they know who she is and apparently they want her out of the way. I want you to stick with her. She is to be protected at all times. When these guys try to make another attempt, which I am sure they will you will prevent it and hopefully catch them"

"Yes, sir"

"Don't 'yes, sir' me DiNozzo. Get to work"

"Where is she now?"

"Her house, I left two officers with her, relieve them. I want your team on this." He looked towards Kate for a second and then retreated to his office

"Couldn't you get him to soften up a little bit?" Kate hit him in the arm "I know, I know. You guys don't mix business with pleasure"

"That's exactly right DiNozzo and you better not mention it in front of him" Kate thought of Tony as a brother, a very annoying brother, but she wouldn't ask for a better partner. "So, I guess we are headed to this David's home"

"Don't worry I'll take first watch. I am up anyways. You can go back to doing whatever it is you and the Captain were doing" he moved before she had a chance to hit him again "I'll give you a call in the morning to arrange the schedule with McGee, Lee, Grayson and Findley. Langer will have to stick to the office"

"Whatever you say boss" he had been promoted almost a year ago and was now in charge of his unit, but with Kate it was more of sharing command. "See you in the morning"

He reached his car when he realized he didn't have Ms. David's address, so he headed back into the precinct and into his office. There it was in his inbox, the file with all the information. McGee sure was efficient. He looked at the address; she sure lived in a great part of town. He felt a little weird parking his jeep in the garage of this magnificent building, especially when all the cars parked there were expensive, very expensive. He headed to the lobby and up to her apartment. One of the officers was stationed in the lobby, he told him he could go and he would send his partner down in a moment. When he reached the 15th floor he was surprised to see that her apartment was the whole floor. He saw the other officer standing by the door and told him to go. The place was big, but it wasn't decorated with expensive antiques like he expected. It was simply decorated and there were a lot of pictures of her family. His curiosity won and he found himself looking at the pictures.

"Anything interesting detective?"

He turned and saw her and found himself once again captivated by her eyes. She was wearing a pair of cargo pants and a t-shirt, her hair was down and she was barefoot. She almost looked like another person, nothing to do with the impeccably dressed woman in high heels he saw before. "Very nice pictures Ms. David" he felt stupid saying that but it was the only thing that came to his mind.

"Thank you detective. Did you plan on standing there or is there something you wanted?" she brushed a strand of hair from her face and Tony saw the bruise that was forming. He then found himself looking at the rest of her for evidence of more bruises.

She seemed to know what he was doing "Just the bruise in my face and this on in my arm detective"

He couldn't see himself, but if he could he would have swore he was blushing. How could this woman whom he had only seen twice make him blush? "Well, I am glad Ms. David. I am sorry that happened to you"

"Thank you detective." After a moment went by and he didn't say anything she continued, "And you are here because?"

"Yes, I am here because we believe you are in danger. The person who tried to run you over is most likely connected to a case we have been working."

"I assumed as much considering I never had an attempt made on my life before"

"Well, we believe they will attempt it again."

"And you think I need protection. Ja!"

Now he remembered why he was so frustrated with her before, this woman could drive a crazy man nuts. "Well obviously you do or otherwise they wouldn't have been able to get so close to you tonight."

He saw realization in her face and couldn't help himself and smirked at her.

"Well detective what do you suggest for my protection?"

"You'll have someone with you at all times"

"Really at all times?"

"Yes at all times" this woman was toying with him but he wouldn't let her get to his head

"And I am guessing I don't have a say in this?"

"I am afraid no. If you were to deny your cooperation it could be taken as an obstruction of justice and you would be arrested"

"Well detective I might have to think about that. What if I want to be arrested?"

Yeah, she was definitely frustrating. Why couldn't she just accept things? "Then I would suggest you let me know now so we can get it over with"

"You do realize detective that my lawyers would have me out of your petty jail in a blink."

"We would see about that then."

"Don't get all worked up detective. I will accept your 'protection' but only because my father asked me to. Don't for a second think I will do everything you say" she emphasized the last part and Tony knew she meant it. This was going to be difficult. He just hoped the smugglers made their attack as soon as possible. "Well don't just stand there come in. I don't plan on spending the whole night standing"

"Yes Ms. David. I can be outside your room while you sleep."

"Okay, stop right there." She turned so abruptly that if it wasn't for her hand on his chest he would have crashed against her, probably sending her both to the floor. "First of all if I must endure your presence you will stop calling me Ms. David. My name is Ziva"

"Very well Ziva"

"And second you do not come in the bathroom with me" He almost laughed at her last comment, but she said it so seriously that he contained himself and merely nodded. "Very well as long as that's clear we will understand each other." She kept walking and entered was he assumed was her room. He stopped outside, checking the area for a comfortable chair, because he sure as well wasn't going to stand up the whole night. He found a sofa and went to sit, it was comfortable enough.

"What the hell?" he felt something against his head; he turned and saw a pillow and a blanket.

"Here, wouldn't want you being uncomfortable detective"

"Tony"

"What?"

"If I call you Ziva, you call me Tony"

"Very well Tony, good night" she didn't give him a chance to respond but just closed the door behind her. Ziva made it to her bed, got under the blankets and silently cried. She had been so close today, closer than ever before but her chance was ruined. Now they knew she was involved and were going to kill her before she got a chance at her objective. She just prayed that she would be able to accomplish what she needed to do before they killed her; because she was sure they would and not even handsome detective Tony DiNozzo would stop them. She knew them well; after all she used to be one of them.

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**_Please review. I love reviews. They make my day and they will make me update faster. Thanks_**


	3. Chapter 3

**_Here is the next chapter. Not a lot of action yet but we get more Tony and Ziva moments so I hope you guys enjoy that. I want to thanks everyone who's reading this, and a special thanks to those who reviewed and let me know your thoughts on the story. Please keep reviewing and letting me know if you like it. Like always I don't own any of the characters. _**

**_P.S.- The next chapter is already done and if I get enough reviews I'll post it today. Thanks for reading_**

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"Wake up detective" It was now 7:30 am and Ziva was impatiently trying to wake up the snoring detective without any success. She was usually up by 5 for her morning run but because of the previous day's events she had fallen sleep. She woke up with a headache and in desperate need to run. She loved running, it took her away from all her problems, and today she needed that more than ever. She needed to think and whith the morning breeze hitting her face she did her best thinking. The detective, however, was not helping her in any way. She took a moment to really look at him. She found him to be very handsome. He was quick with his mouth and in the two encounters she had with him she felt he hid behind his dry humor. He seemed to take his work very seriously, the day before she could see steam coming out of him because his precious operation hadn't been a success. She was also frustrated and a little bit scared, but she didn't show it, she couldn't because if she did then everything she had been working for the last nine months would go down the drain. "Damn it detective, get up" she finally yelled and this seemed to get him up.

He looked around confused, this wasn't his apartment, it was too clean to be his apartment, suddenly he remembered the night before and where he was. A good reminder was the gorgeous woman standing in front of him. "Ms. David you are up"

"Obviously. And you were not. Is this how you plan on protecting me" she couldn't help herself.

"I was just resting my eyes, but I had everything under control"

"Of course you did. Anyways I am going on my morning run and did not want you to think I had escaped" she said it in a mocking voice, she knew she could easily escape him.

"Well thank you for that." He was more awake now and looked outside the windows, it still looked dark outside. "It is absolutely necessary to go out running. I mean a rich girl like you probably has her own gym, why go outside and run."

She decided to ignore his comment about her being a rich girl. "Even if I did I like running outside"

"Well perhaps we can make an exception today and not go running"

"Detective I thought you were here to protect me not try to impede my daily activities"

Tony wanted to yell at her. For god's sake someone had tried to kill her and she was acting like nothing happened. "Ms. David I am not asking you to stop running, just today. I need to present you to the rest of my team and we need to establish a schedule for your protection."

Ziva was very frustrated, she couldn't go out running and now she was going to have to be around more cops. Damn it, if it wasn't because her father had begged her to accept the police protection she wouldn't be in this situation, but she couldn't deny her father anything. "Very well detective you win this one but like I said yesterday don't for one second think I am going to comply with all your requests." She then disappeared into her bedroom and slammed the door in his face.

"Wouldn't dream of it!" he yelled after her. What a great way to start the morning DiNozzo. He took out his phone and dialed Kate.

"Todd" she answered with a sleepy voice.

"Hey sleepyhead"

"DiNozzo what do you want so early?"

"Early. What do you mean early? I've been up for some time now. Of course I understand the Cap. kept you busy the rest of the night." He couldn't help but tease her about her relationship with Captain Gibbs.

"Oh please! So how was babysitting duty?" she knows he hated protection duty and didn't think twice about reminding him.

"Oh, it was peachy." The sarcasm in his voice was indisputable. "Anyways, I need you to get everyone together. She needs to meet the team and we need to arrange a schedule."

"At the precinct?"

"No, we have to be careful. They'll know she's going to be under surveillance but I don't want them knowing every agent's face. Let's meet at her offices. She's the president so I assume she has an office there. McGee has the information be there in an hour."

"Got it"

"Oh Kate, don't forget to say hello to the Captain for me."

"Tony you need to get yourself a woman and stop minding my life so much"

"Oh but it's so much fun"

"See you in an hour DiNozzo" and she hanged up.

He sat around and waited for about twenty minutes until she got out of her bedroom. She was now dressed in a business suit and had her hair up. She still looked amazing but he liked her better with her cargo pants and simple t-shirt.

"I assumed we are going to your work so the rest of my team will meet us there"

"Thanks for letting me know detective" she moved around the apartment until she reached the kitchen. It was big and comfortable. Tony had looked around the apartment during the night when she went to sleep so he had seen it already. What he didn't expect was to see her getting ready to cook. "Would you like some breakfast detective or are you like all cops who only eat donuts?"

"No, I pretty much eat anything" and it was true, he could eat just about anything.

"Very well I shall make us omelets"

He nodded and just looked at her as she moved around the kitchen. It was obvious that she was very comfortable there and he couldn't help being curious as to why the heiress to a multimillion dollar company would do her own breakfast. By the look of her apartment she didn't keep a maid, and yet everything seemed to be clean and in order. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Do you know how to do coffee?"

"That's my specialty" he got up from the stool he was sitting at and headed towards the coffee machine. He found the coffee right beside it and got to work. In a few minutes both the omelets and the coffee were done, so they sat down in a small table that was in the kitchen to eat. They kept looking at each other when they thought the other person wasn't looking. Tony decided that since she was kind enough to do breakfast he would try and be nice. "Ms. David I appreciate the breakfast and again I am sorry about you not being able to go running."

"Ziva. Remember detective my name is Ziva."

"Right Ziva."

"Don't worry about the run. We don't always get what we want in life, do we?"

She offered him a small smile and he was sure she wasn't referring to the run. "That's weird coming from someone in your position." He knew he shouldn't but he was hoping to find out more about her, he needed to because she was an enigma that fascinated him.

"You mean the money?" he slowly nodded but didn't say anything in the hopes that she would continue, and she did. "I would give it all up you know?"

"Why?"

Ziva looked at him and couldn't help but smile more, he was obviously curious, and for some reason she felt she could talk to him. He wasn't the type of snobs she was always around and it felt good to talk to him. Of course his smile probably had a lot to do with it; the man could get anyone to do his will with that smile. "Because it makes me feel like a mark. Everyone is always looking at me, waiting for me to make a mistake. I was free you know, before I had to step in for my father I had a life."

"I am sorry I know he had a stroke."

"Yeah, he did and now I am in charge, so I guess there's no point in dwelling in the past. Are you done?" she signaled to his plate, now almost empty and he knew she was done talking about her. He picked it up the last piece of his omelet and handed her the plate.

"Thanks for the breakfast Ziva."

"No problem detective"

"You can call me Tony remember." she nodded but didn't say his name and went back to putting the plates and cups in the dishwasher. He wanted her to say his name; he liked how she said it.

"How many in your team?"

"Seven counting me. But only five with enough field experience to stay with you."

"I see"

"You'll meet them all in a little bit"

"And you trust these people?"

"With my life."

"Very well, I shall trust your judgment then." What she didn't want to say was she didn't trust anyone to keep her alive. "Well I am ready to go Tony."

"Is your driver waiting for you?"

"I don't have a driver. Who you saw yesterday is my father's driver and my father's car. I have my own car and I enjoy driving it too much to give that up."

"Okay I will follow you in my car then."

They reached the garage in silence. He saw her approaching a red mini cooper, he approached his Jeep. Just before he got in his car he heard her say "Try to keep up detective!" and then she laughed. He then remembered McGee's mention of her speeding tickets.

Fifteen minutes later they were outside TelAviv Imports and Exports. Tony was still gripping his steering wheel as if his life depended on it. The woman was crazy, in the short drive she had made at least 30 traffic violations, not to mention the fact that she made a 35 minute drive in 15 minutes. He had no choice but try and keep up with her, which meant almost dying a couple of times.

A valet came to take his keys and he was more than happy to hand them over. She was speaking to what looked like the head of valet.

"Saul it's just a bit unbalanced. Would you mind having Steven take a look at it?"

"No problem, Ms. Ziva it will be ready for when you leave."

"Thanks Saul, you're an angel." And then she kissed him in the cheek and gave him a hug. The older man smiled and returned the hug.

"You take care Ms. Ziva"

"I will" she started walking towards the entrance of the building with Tony on her heels

"What was all that about?" he asked casually

"Nothing important. He makes sure my car is in top shape."

"Speaking about cars, did you buy your driver's license?"

"I most certainly didn't. I took the test like everyone else and passed it with high marks" she seemed insulted by his comment

"Then what were all those crazy stunts you pulled back there?"

She laughed and he found himself getting lost in her laugh, it was a great sound and it made her even prettier "Were you afraid Tony?"

"Terrified actually. I don't tend to try and kill myself while I drive"

"I don't either, I just like the speed."

"Oh, that explains it." He knew it didn't but he let it go. Her driving like a lunatic was obviously something she did often and wouldn't stop doing any time soon.

They were now on the elevator heading to her office in the 22nd floor. He noticed she was well liked. She stopped several times to talk with employees. She apparently knew them all well because she even asked about their families. As soon as they stepped off the elevator they greeted by a middle age woman with a friendly face.

"Good morning Marie" Ziva stopped by her desk and picked up several documents

"Good morning Ziva" she looked at Tony as if questioning his presence.

"He's a good friend from my childhood, Marie this is Tony, Tony Marie" pleasantries were exchanged and Tony stepped behind her once more. "I need you to postpone the board meeting until next week."

"But Ziva you know they are pushing for it"

"I know, but they are just going to have to wait" she seemed to get tense when speaking about the meeting and he couldn't help but wonder why such a strong woman would be scared of a board meeting. Her comment at breakfast about people waiting for her to make a mistake came to his mind and he thought that maybe it was the members of the boards that were always watching her.

"Okay" the secretary realized she didn't want to discuss it. "Ziva there are some people in the conference room waiting for you. One of them gave me her name, Kate Todd."

Ziva looked over to Tony, who nodded. This was his team that she needed to meet. "Thanks Marie. I'll take care of it."

She started walking and Tony just followed, assuming they were going to the conference room and they were. She opened the door and there was his team. Ziva immediately stepped aside and let him enter while observing his team. There were two women. One looked to be of Asian descent, her eyes were down looking at a file, the other one was a beautiful brunette. She was the first Tony approached and Ziva couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy of the way they looked at each other. It was stupid, she had just met Tony and only because of extreme circumstances and she was getting jealous over the looks he gave this woman. No, Ziva needed to keep those thoughts out of her mind. She looked around the room and saw three other men all looking expectantly towards Tony.

"Ziva this is my team. My second in command detective Todd" he gestured towards the brunette woman, she gave her a warm smile but Ziva just nodded. "This is detective Lee" the Asian girl looked up from what she was reading for a moment to acknowledge her and then went back to reading. "This is McGee, Grayson and Findley" he motioned to the three men; only the one named McGee offered her a smile, the rest just nodded. "This is Ziva David"

"Nice to meet you all. I thought you said there were seven in your team"

"Ah yes, detective Langer was inside the restaurant yesterday and we don't want to risk anyone recognizing him"

"Very well. You can use this office as long as you need. I need to get to work. My office is right across the hall."

Tony nodded his thanks and watched her leave; of course he couldn't help but admire her figure as she walked out. "Okay, this is the situation. They tried to kill her yesterday and we believe they will try again. Meaning this is our chance to catch them. Lee you and Findley will work from the precinct. Keep working our sources; we might be able to get some insight into their next move. Langer will help you with that. McGee, Grayson and Kate you guys will be with me in the field. Someone needs to be with her at all times. I'm still on her until seven. Kate you'll take over, then Grayson and McGee. You guys know the rest" they all nodded and headed to leave. Tony had complete confidence in his team. They knew what they had to do and did a fine job. Only Kate remained behind like he knew she would.

"Tony don't get involve like that"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I saw the way you were looking at her and how you called her by her first name."

"Kate you are imagining things. I didn't look at her anyway and she asked me to call her Ziva."

"Whatever, you say Tony. I am just telling you don't fall for her. It could end badly."

"Yes mother."

Kate knew when to shut up; she just hoped Tony listened to her for once. She saw that spark in his eyes when he looked at her and it worried her because she didn't want to see Tony get hurt. Kate was a good reader of people, and she had a suspicion that Ms. David was more involved that she let on, she didn't know why, but she just knew Ziva David was hiding something.

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**_Hope you liked it. Remember to review. The more reviews I get the faster I'll update._**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Keeping my promise here is the next chapter. Things start getting interesting now. Thanks so much to all those that are reading and specially to those who leave me reviews. Please keep reviewing. Enjoy the chapter._**

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She reached her office and pulled out the phone she kept locked in her desk. She needed to use the time she was alone. She quickly dialed the well known number, after three rings the voice that invaded her nightmares answered.

"Ziva, I knew you would call."

"Damian, you tried to kill me." There was no emotion in her voice, it was as if she was talking about the weather.

"You were with the police amore mio."

"You know me. I did not say anything."

"Oh, but Ziva you know I am not one to take chances."

"I still have what you need."

"I haven't forgotten"

"When?"

"Don't try to play with me Ziva, I know the police is watching you."

Damn it, she knew he would find out but she was hoping it would take longer. "When Damian. They are not a problem."

"Oh Ziva I know they are not a problem to you but they are to me."

"Damian, when and where. I will be there without the police and we will proceed as planned."

He seemed to be thinking about it, so it took a moment to receive his answer. "I'll contact you." And the call was terminated.

Ziva let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. He hadn't said yes, but he hadn't said no either, it gave her hope but it also worried her. Nothing was ever simple with Damian, she should know it. She just wanted all of this to be over, even if it meant she would be dead. Just then there was a knock on the door, she knew it was Tony, she could feel it, so she put the phone back in its drawer and wiped the tear that until that moment she didn't realize was rolling down her face just in time for Tony to walk into the room.

"Well, it's all set."

"Good. Your team seems young"

"Yeah, they are young but they are all the best at what they do."

"I see. Well I need to get some work done and since it looks like you'll be here the whole day I suggest you get comfortable."

"Actually I was hoping there was a computer I could use. That way I can do some work as well."

"Of course" she picked up her phone as asked Marie to bring a laptop.

The rest of the day went by without any big incidents. Tony just sat there looking through the files that McGee had sent him on the leads they had received, but he had to admit that he wasn't really paying attention to them, most of the day he spent looking at her, seeing different faces of Ziva David. She was tough when she was talking to a partner company and negotiated a price; she was kind and patient when she spoke to an employee about a personal problem, and she was on the verge of tears when she spoke to her father, promising him to visit him later in the day. Around lunch time Marie walked into the office with food and a drink for him, he thanked her and questioned her about Ziva's lunch. Marie informed him that she never ate lunch and had only asked for something to be brought to him. He wanted to thank her but she just kept going from call to call. The lack of sleeping seemed to be getting to him because he felt his eyelids closing and as much as he tried he couldn't stop them. He told himself he would just close his eyes for a second and then he would be okay.

Ziva noticed the moment the detective had fallen asleep. She couldn't help but stare at him; the man had devoured his food in a matter of minutes and fell asleep, he was now snoring and drooling a little bit. Ziva got up from her chair and kneeled before the couch he was currently occupying. She stared at him for some time, praying that he wouldn't get hurt in all this; she felt a pang in her heart at the thought of him being hurt and almost kicked herself for feeling like that afterwards. She didn't know what was wrong with her, she wasn't one to fall in love with guys after a day, no that was more like her sister, at the thought of her sister tears threatened to fall but she pushed them away. Ziva was more of a get to know them good before allowing herself to feel anything remotely important, and yet she couldn't get his face or his smile out of her mind. She had to keep those thoughts at bay, she needed to accomplish her mission and all she could do is try to keep him as far away from the danger as possible, of course she didn't think he was going to make it easy. She couldn't dwell on it, so she just went back to work.

When Tony opened his eyes again he found Ziva in the same position she had been before, except she wasn't on the phone but looking at something in her computer.

"Finally awake?" she asked without even turning to look at him

"Yeah, I think there was something in the food. Thanks by the way."

"You're welcome. You might want to clean that by your mouth." She was now looking at him and pointing at his chin.

He touched his face and realized he had drool, oh how embarrassing, he had drooled in front of her, he could feel his face getting red. So he just got up and went into the side door to what he knew was a bathroom. He came out a couple of minutes later looking his normal self again. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay, it shows you're human."

"So at what time you ditch this place?" he looked at his watch and it was now 3:30pm

"In a little bit. Are you with me all day long?"

"Um, no. Detective Todd will be replacing me at 7pm and stay through the night." Tony couldn't help but notice she looked disappointed and he wondered if she didn't dislike him as much as he thought.

"Very well. I need to stop my father's house before heading back to my apartment."

"Okay"

They went back to being silent and twenty minutes later she got up, went to the bathroom and came out saying she was ready to go. He followed her out of the office, she said goodbye to Marie and they entered the elevator.

"Do you think you could drive a little bit less frantic?" Tony asked her very casually.

She looked at him and just snickered. "That's the only way I know how to drive."

"Well, we have a problem then because I don't really think I can follow you while you fly past other cars again. You see I value my life."

"And you think I don't? Well I do, but I just cannot get myself to sit behind the wheel and go slow."

"Okay, then we take your car and I drive." That seemed like the only solution for Tony

"How about your car?"

"Don't worry I'll get a ride back to get it. Believe me anything except a repeat of this morning's performance."

"Whatever you say Tony."

"I am surprise you are not going against me." And he really was. He was expecting a lot more resistance on her part.

"I am just cooperating. The faster we get this over the faster I can go back to my life."

Tony didn't answer, apparently she wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible, and here he was imagining she might like him. They got to the lobby, she was going to ask for her car but he interrupted her.

"I'll get it. I have to get something from my Jeep anyways. Just wait here. When you see me pull out then come out." She nodded and saw him head down to the parking garage to retrieve her car.

She had been waiting for about five minutes when her cell phone rang. She thought it must be her father confirming she would go by and visit him so she didn't bother looking at the caller id but simply answered."Hello"

"Now my problem has been taken care of."

She immediately recognized the voice. "What do you mean?" but she received no answer as the call ended. Ziva was still grasping the meaning of the call when an explosion was heard coming from the outside. She looked through the doors and saw her car in flames. She ran as fast as her high heels allowed her and didn't stop until she was standing as close to her car as she could. The flames were still burning. It was then that she saw it, the person sitting in the driver's seat, her chest hurt and she yelled, "Tonyyyyyyyyyyyyyy."

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**_I know it's evil to leave you guys hanging like that. I almost have the next chapter finished so if I get lots of reviews I'll probably be motivated to finish it during the weekend and post it so please review, review, review. It makes me happy._**


	5. Chapter 5

**_Here is the next chapter. Thanks again to those who are reading and those who reviewed. A little more Tiva on this chapter so that should make some people happy. Please review. I love getting reviews. Enjoy_**

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People were starting to gather around. She could hear sirens in the background, she felt someone talking to her and yet she couldn't get herself to look away from the car and the unmoving and burnt driver. He was dead and it was her fault. Her vision got clouded as tears started to fall, she tried to stop them but couldn't. She never thought this would go so far, now he was dead and as unbelievable as it sounded it hurt. She didn't know how but in the twenty four hours she had known this man he had managed to wake something inside her that she thought was dead forever, he was able to make her believe in the possibility of love again. And now he was gone, just like that.

She felt herself shaking but couldn't do anything to stop it. She closed her eyes wanting the image in front of her to go away. People were still trying to get her attention but she wasn't responding to any of them, she didn't know if her voice would work. All of the sudden she felt a breeze, she tried to hug herself but the cold wouldn't go away, she then felt the need to turn around, it was something stronger than her and that's when she saw him. At first she thought he was a hallucination, her mind playing tricks on her. She closed her eyes and opened them again sure that he wouldn't be standing there but he was, he was running towards her yelling her name.

"Ziva are you okay?" Tony heard the explosion and ran as fast as he could, as soon as he emerged from the underground parking lot his eyes started scanning the crowd for Ziva. He hadn't seen her immediately but he did see her red mini cooper in flames. His heart started racing, as his eyes kept looking for her, he wouldn't think the worst, she had to be fine. He finally saw her, standing mere feet from the car. He could see people trying to talk to her but she didn't answer. She yelled her name in hopes that she would hear him but it didn't seem to work, the sirens as well as the talking of all the people around them seemed to drown his voice. He tried once more, and this time she turned around and looked him straight in the face. He ran towards her and in a moment was besides her asking her if she was okay. She didn't answer, just stared at him. "Ziva, are you okay?"

She didn't know what came over her, but she couldn't talk. She was still shaking and he must have taken this as a sign that she was cold because he took her in his arms and held on to her.

"It's okay Ziva, you're okay." Once again she didn't answer but at least her shaking seemed to stop, still he didn't let her go, just held on to her for dear life.

A couple of minutes later the police and the firefighters arrived. Everyone was moved back. Tony didn't identify himself as a police officer. Never letting go of Ziva, he moved towards the side of the building, took out his cell phone and called Langer, he answered after the second ring. "Langer I want you outside TelAviv headquarters now"

"What happened boss?"

"They tried it again. They blew up her car."

"She okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine. Stop asking questions and get your ass out here. I want every detail of that investigation."

"Sure thing boss."

"One more thing. When you get here you don't know me."

"Got it."

Once he finished his conversation he turned to her. She was no longer shaking but she was pale and he could see the marks of dried tears in her eyes. "Hey, you're okay."

She finally answered him, "Yeah I am okay." She was still processing the fact that he was alive. She could breathe easier now. He was fine, he wasn't dead.

"I know it can be traumatic, that was supposed to be you."

"Who was it? I thought you were getting the car."

"I was, but when I got down there someone was already bringing it up for you."

"Who?" she suspected who, but needed him to confirm it

"Apparently the man you were speaking to in the morning"

"Oh God, Saul!" she tried to stop the sob that escaped her mouth but couldn't. Saul couldn't be dead; he was just an innocent man.

"I am so sorry Ziva." He tried to touch her shoulder to comfort her but she moved away. "Did you know him well?"

"Yes, I did. I've known him all my life." She turned around not wanting him to see her tears.

He knew she was crying but decided not to pry. This was obviously someone she knew well and cared for, and she needed to grieve. Tony's mind kept reverting from man to police officer. As much as he wanted to be attentive to what she needed he couldn't help but wonder why was it so important for these people to kill her, there was something more going on here and he was going to find out what it was, and he'll be dammed if he didn't do it because one of these attempts on her life was actually successful, the alternative just wasn't acceptable. He made himself stop thinking about that now and turned her around. "Ziva it's not your fault." Apparently that was the wrong thing to say because she got mad.

"Of course it's my fault!" she was yelling at him now. "Don't you see they wanted to kill me? He had nothing to with this, he was an innocent man. How can you say it's not my fault?"

"Because it isn't. Those maniacs are the ones to blame and I promise you I will catch them and make them pay."

"It's not enough Tony. It'll never be enough. Believe me nothing is enough when they take the life of someone you care about, not even seeing the guilty person dead in front of you is enough."

Her last statement froze him in place. What did she mean? What was this woman hiding from him? Had that happened to her? Too many questions and no answers were making him very frustrated. He was brought back to reality by her voice.

"Oh god how do I tell Alice?"

"Who?"

"His wife Alice. How do I tell her that he died because of me?"

"Ziva he didn't die because of you."

"Yes he did, and nothing you say will change that." He heard the determination in her voice, and just like that the shocked Ziva was gone and in front of him was that seemingly cold woman again. He watched as she angrily brushed her tears from her face, fixed her clothes and walked back out to the scene with her head held high leaving him no choice but to follow her.

The fire was now extinguished. Ziva headed straight to the police officer and introduced herself. She informed him that was her car and told him she knew the driver. The officer took the information she gave him and told her she would need to go to the station the next day and make a statement. She replied no problem and turned to face the employees that were standing nearby. She addressed them, told them this was a very unfortunate incident, to go home and let her know if they needed anything. Someone asked her the identity of the driver and she said they were still trying to determinate it. She didn't want anyone contacting Alice before she did. After a few more minutes of talking to her employees, she turned to Tony who had been silently standing behind her.

"I still need to go to my father's and then to Saul's house. Can you take me in your car until I secure another vehicle?"

"Of course" they walked together to the parking lot. They got on his car and not a word was spoken. He didn't ask for the address since he already knew it and she didn't offer it either.

Twenty minutes later they were parked outside a mansion in one of the most prestigious neighborhoods. They got out of the car and when they were almost at the door she turned to face him.

"I need to see my father alone."

"Of course I'll stand outside his door."

"Thank you"

They entered the mansion and were greeted by a butler. He immediately welcomed Ziva, she acknowledged him and without another word went up the stairs and straight to her father's room. Tony juts followed, that seemed to be what he was doing the most, following her. She stopped in front of a door and he took this as his clue to stay in the hall. The door opened, she walked in and a nurse walked out. The middle age woman gave him a small smile and closed the door behind her taking a seat in the chair across from him in the hall.

"You might want to sit down. She's usually with him for some time." He muttered his thanks but remained standing beside the door.

Inside the room Ziva sat in his father's bed, trying to hold the tears that were threatening to burst from her eyes. It was always like this whenever she saw her father. It was difficult for her to see such a strong man tied to a bed barely being able to move or speak. It reminded her how fragile life was. But no matter what she was feeling she always put a happy face for her father and offered him the best smile she could. "Hello papa, how are you today."

With some difficulty the man in the gigantic bed answered her while taking her hand into his. "I am fine my child. How was your day?" Eli David was no fool. He saw the pain in his daughter's eyes every time she came to see him. He would do anything in the world to take that pain away but he couldn't. He was stuck in this bed that had become his hell. When he woke up in the hospital paralyzed from half his body, he wished he could have died, he prayed to die, but then he saw his daughter, his now only daughter thanking the gods that he was awake and he no longer asked to die. He asked to be strong enough to live like this, for her and only for her. Her visits were the only bright part of his days, and even though he saw how sad she became every time she saw him, he couldn't stop her from coming, he wouldn't because he knew they both needed it. They both needed the companion of the only family they have left in this world. He still remembered when they were a happy family. Him, and his girls, Ziva and Tali. They smiled and they laughed, and even when outside problems were overwhelming they knew that as long as they had each other everything would be okay. But then Tali died, and his body turned against him, and his Ziva became the bearer of all their tragedies. How he wished he could turn back time and make everything like it used to be. But he couldn't, all he could do is try to smile when his little girl comes to see him.

"It was good papa. But I missed you. You know I always miss you." When she was with her father was the only time Ziva allowed herself to freely express her emotions.

"I miss you too Ziva. Tell me are the police protecting you?"

"Yes, I promised you I would allow them to give me protection."

"I know. I am just making sure they are. How was work?"

"Work was good papa. I made a good deal with the Italian exporters."

"I am so proud of you Ziva."

"I know papa, you always tell me."

"And I will keep telling you because it's true. I am so proud of you, of the woman you have become and I am not just referring to the great job you are doing at the company. "

"Yes papa, you tell me every time." Ziva didn't want to hear her father once again tell her what a great human being she was because today, more than any other day she felt undeserving of such praise. She now had the weight of someone's death over her shoulders, today she felt dirtier than ever.

"I know my daughter. You must forgive this old man. I am probably boring you with my talk."

"Nonsense papa, you could never bore me. You know I love you."

"And I love you, more than anything in the world." She moved closer to him, kissed him and stayed close to her father for a few minutes, she felt comforted in her father's arms. She wished she could go back to when she was a little girl and daddy always took care of everything. But it was impossible.

"I must go papa. I am tired. But I promise I will come tomorrow. Earlier and maybe we could go around the garden and I could read you a little bit."

"I would love that." She kissed him one more time and got ready to leave, she hated to cut her visit with her father short but she didn't think she could hold the smile on her face much longer, not today. "Ziva before you go I want to speak to the police officer who's guarding you."

"What for papa?"

"I just want to meet the person."

"Papa, I don't think that's necessary."

"I know my daughter, just indulge this old man"

"Very well papa." She went to the door and opened it, not surprised when she saw Tony standing beside it. "Would you come in? He wants to meet you."

Tony was a little shocked by her request but didn't think twice about going in the room. Once inside he was a little hesitant but a nod from her head got him moving further into the room until he was standing in front of the bed. Ziva was now sitting beside her father who seemed to be looking Tony over. "Mr. David it is nice to meet you." For some reason he couldn't explain he was nervous about meeting this man, kind of how nervous he was when he met the father of his prom date.

"I seemed to be at a disadvantage young man because I do not know who you are."

"I'm detective Anthony DiNozzo."

"And you are in charge of protecting my daughter."

"Ah, yes sir."

"Mr. DiNozzo, she is my biggest treasure so I beg of you, take care of her."

Tony could see he meant every word he said. Ziva was all this man had in life. "Sir, I promise you I will protect her with my life." Mr. David seemed satisfied with that, and Tony realized that he meant it, he was not only assuring Ziva's father that he would keep her safe, he was telling himself that he wouldn't let anything happen to her, and then it hit him. When did this woman because so important that he would risk his own life for her? He knew when. It was the moment he saw her car burning and thought she was dead.

Anthony DiNozzo had never believed in love at first sight, but as of today he did because he madly in love with Ziva David.

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**_I hope you liked the chapter. Please let me know what you thought. Thanks_**


	6. Chapter 6

**_Here is the next chapter. Thank you all for reading and reviewing. Enjoy_**

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They hadn't talked to each other more than necessary ever since they left her father's house. He had received a couple of phone call from his team about the fire incident; they were heading the investigation but still had no leads. They had however, identified the body in the car as Saul McClain. McGee had provided him with the family's address, so not even for that did he bother Ziva. They arrived at the McClain residence, she was about to step out of the car but he took her hand, making her turn to look at him.

"I can do it Ziva. I can tell her as a police officer."

"No, I'll do it. Thank you." He nodded and they both got out of the car.

Ziva was dreading what was coming next, but she knew she had to do it. She had known Saul and Alice since she was a little girl. Her father had always made sure his daughters were present at company events and she always shared with all the employees. Saul, however always treated her special, she liked him a lot, probably because he never treated as a silly child and this led to her knowing his family pretty well. She was almost to the door when she realized Tony was not on her heels like he had been the whole day, she turned around and saw him standing by his car. His eyes were worried but he still offered her a smile and she returned it with a small one of her own. Somehow that smile gave her the strength she needed. She knocked on the door, after a couple of seconds a smiling Alice opened it.

"Ziva, darling so nice to see you."

"Alice, I need to speak to you."

"Sure, come on in." she went in and Alice closed the door behind her, she knew the hard part was coming.

The door finally opened and a red eye Ziva walked towards him. Her face showed no emotion. She walked straight to him. "I would like to go home now."

"Home it is" they both got on the car and no other sound was uttered. Tony didn't know what to think, one moment she was crying and the next she was so detached. They arrived at her building; Kate was sitting in the lobby. He knew she would be of course, but Ziva seemed surprised to see her.

"Ziva, you remember detective Todd."

"Of course, detective." She smiled at Kate, but tony knew it wasn't a real smile.

"Ms. David" Kate told her returning the smile.

"Ziva, Kate we'll be taking over now. You okay with that?"

"Of course detective" Tony knew she wasn't, for one her eyes looked hurt and second she had called him detective.

"Kate, call me if anything happens."

"Of course Tony."

Tony left and both women went up to Ziva's apartment.

"Detective make yourself at home. I am just going to turn in. it has been an exciting day." Ziva didn't even give Kate a chance to answer; she just went into her bedroom and closed the door.

"Sure thing" Kate said more to herself than anyone else. She was worried about Tony, more than she had been in the morning. When he looked at Ziva she saw something in his eyes she hadn't seen in a long time, love. After she looked around she settled in the living room and made a call. A smile came to her face when she heard the voice on the other end of the line.

"Gibbs"

"Hey it's me"

His voice softened and he changed his demeanor. Kate was the only one who could get him to loosen up. "You know calling me while you're working is not proper."

"Oh, please. Does that mean I shouldn't answer your calls when I'm working?"

"Of course you should, because during working hours I only call you to deal with work."

"Oh and how do you know I am not calling about work?"

"Because you said 'it's me' and not 'Todd'"

"Okay you got me. I just wanted to let you know I am already working."

"I guess you won't be invading my house tonight?"

"Sorry, I won't. But I promise to do it tomorrow." She could hear his laugh and it made her smile. She had been in love with Gibbs for some time now, and he made her the happiest woman in the world when he declared he loved her too. Suddenly she heard a crash. "Gotta go." She hanged up her phone and took out her firearm. The sound had come from Ziva David's bedroom. She slowly approached her door and was about to open it when she heard voices

"Was that your big plan, killing me" she recognized the voice as Ziva's.

"You don't understand, dear. I wanted to kill your escort." That voice was of a man with a European accent. She was torn between calling for back up, going in, or keep listening. She chose the later, hoping to obtain more information, because Ziva obviously knew this man and for some reason had been hiding it.

"You killed an innocent man"

"Collateral"

"You are cold Damian"

"Well the way I remember, so are you. Or have you changed?"

"You should know the answer to that better than anyone else."

"You are right my dear. I know you, very, very, much. Perhaps in ways that no other man has even known you before."

"Just tell me when and where Damian before I lose my patience."

"I wouldn't recommend that Ziva. I could get mad and accidently kill her."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh but I would."

"I won't let you do it."

"Yeah, you and who else? Your boyfriend the cop?"

There was a silence and Kate heard an intake of breath, Ziva's she assumed. "You leave him out of this."

"Oh, yeah I saw you two outside your office. Very romantic."

"This is between you and me Damian."

"You are right. Let's forget about him for the moment. This is business"

"When and where. I will be there and so will the money"

"I am going to trust you Ziva. But if you betray me you know what will happen. You know no one is safe from me." There was another silence and then he continued. "Two days from tonight. Pier 23. See you then amore mio."

Kate had heard enough. She couldn't let him go. She pushed the door open and yelled. "Police, don't move." The man raised his arms while Kate pointed her gun at him.

"This is not the smartest thing Ziva." He looked at Ziva and sneered.

"Detective please, he's just a friend"

"Ms. David I heard everything. What I can't understand is why you are covering for him."

"You don't understand detective. You need to let him go."

"I am sorry Ms. David but I can't do that." Kate went to dial her phone while still aiming her gun at Damian. In a sudden movement he pulled a gun from his back. Kate saw the gun aimed at her and fired, for a second it seemed like time had frozen. Then she felt the pain, her gun seemed too heavy and let it drop. Her vision was becoming clouded and suddenly her legs didn't seem able to support her any longer, so she fell to the floor. She was having difficulty breathing, she felt something in her mouth, water?, no it was something else and it was hot, she looked at her hands and she saw the blood. She had been shot.

"What have you done?" Ziva was still in shock, one minute she was talking to Damian, getting close to ending this whole nightmare and a second later all hell break loose and detective Todd is in the floor bleeding from two gunshot wounds.

"Remember Ziva, Pier 23. This is your last chance. And make sure there are no cops or everyone dies." And with those words he left the room as suddenly as he arrived.

Ziva kneeled down by detective Todd, hoping to be of help to the wounded woman. She took the detective's phone and dialed 911, she asked for an ambulance and gave them her address then threw the phone on the floor, placing her hands in the detective's wounds trying to slow the bleeding. "You're going to be okay detective, the ambulance is coming."

The pale detective looked at Ziva straight into her eyes. Took her hands and said in a bare whisper, "tell Jethro I love him." She then closed her eyes and let go of Ziva's hands.

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	7. Chapter 7

**_Here is chapter 7. Thanks you all for reading and reviewing. I hope you like this chapter._**

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For a moment everything was silent. There was only Ziva, kneeling in the floor besides a bleeding detective Todd, then they commotion began.

A gray haired man came into her room yelling 'Kate'. Ziva remembered seeing him in the police station the day before. She stood up as soon as he sat and gather her in his arms.

"Kate, hey Katie, come on open your eyes for me." He received no response from her and looked up at Ziva "Where are the paramedics?"

She was about to answer when they came running through the door. They made the man move away from her as they started working. He just stood there, paralyzed looking down at his bloody hands. Two more man came running; she recognized them as part of Tony's team. As soon as they entered the room they directed their attention at the gray haired man.

"Captain what happened?" asked the man she recognized as McGee

The Captain didn't answer, just stared at the sight on the floor and that's when the two detectives turned their eyes to where the paramedics where and saw her. A gasped escaped Langer's mouth.

"Oh God" said McGee. He quickly took out his cell phone and started talking. Ziva wasn't really paying attention until she heard Tony's name. "Tony, I don't know how bad." He must have told him he was on his way because McGee's next words were "Hurry" he then hanged up the phone and turned to Ziva. "Ms. David are you hurt? Do you need medical attention?" he said looking at her blood stained clothes and hands.

"No, I am fine. It's not my blood." she accentuated the fact by waving her hands in the air.

"What happened?"

"I…, she came and..," she didn't know what to say but she was saved from saying anything else when one of the paramedics stood up and said to the gray haired man 'I am sorry' and shook his head.

Ziva knew what that meant, she was dead. The other paramedic moved away from her and the gray haired man kneeled besides her. The two other agents faces lost all color.

Ziva couldn't help but look at her, she felt her stomach turn, she was going to be sick. The woman that a few minutes before had been so full of life and had smiled at her was now ghostly white, on her bedroom floor in a pool of her blood, lifeless. How had this gotten so complicated? She felt ashamed of herself. In that instant Tony appeared, out of breath, and with a worried face. His face connected with hers immediately, but moved fast to where detective Todd laid on the floor.

She saw his face turn from worry to anguish, and her heart broke at seeing how much pain he was in. he too knelt in front of the detective, touched her face and kissed her hand.

The gray haired man looked up and said "DiNozzo I want you to find out who is responsible for this and bring him before me. Do you understand? I want them in front of me."

The anger radiating from the older man was unquestionable, and she saw Tony nod before he got up from the floor and turned towards McGee.

"Was there anyone here?"

"Just them too when we came in."

"The scene is yours. From now on she's with me at all times." He signaled towards Ziva. "I want to know the minute you know something. Get everyone you need. Understand?"

The younger agent nodded. "Tony, I am sorry"

"Is not the time to be sorry. Just find me something?"

"Yes boss"

Tony turned towards the Captain and Kate again. He couldn't look him in the eye. He had failed him and her, and now she was dead. He knew the Cap. was going to stay with her until they took her away, and he needed to get away from here. His eyes once again found Ziva's, asking her without words if she was okay, she nodded. When McGee called him and told him he needed to get back to Ziva's apartment he thought something else had happened to her, but McGee said no, that she was okay. His relieve was short lived as a second later he was informed it was Kate. He wasn't far from the apartment, but the drive seemed to take an eternity. He felt a pain in his heart that was making it hard to breathe and he didn't know how to stop it. So he turned into cop mode and got to work, because that was the only thing that kept him from collapsing.

He walked towards Ziva and saw her take a step back, was he afraid of him? Did he look that bad? "You can't stay here. It's a crime scene. Come on" his words seemed to relax her and she took the hand he extended.

They walked out of her bedroom and Ziva was surprised to see her previously empty apartment full of police. She felt Tony squeezed her hand as they made their way through the apartment and into the elevator. Once inside he raised his head and closed his eyes but didn't say a word. When they got to the parking lot, he opened the passenger door of his car and let her in; he went around got inside and turned the car on. For a moment she saw his hand trembling against the steering wheel and thought about offering to drive but he didn't give her a chance as he sped away.

Fifteen minutes later he stopped at a small building. She didn't ask but somehow she knew this was where he lived. She followed him as they went up the stairs to the third floor. He opened the door to apartment 322, once inside he dropped his keys and just stood in the middle of the living room. She didn't know what to do so she just stood there as well.

She saw him move towards a cabinet and pick up a photo frame, from where she was standing she couldn't make out the people in the photo but by the way she was tracing his finger over the glass she assumed one of the persons in that picture was detective Todd. He pulled the frame to his chest for a second and then threw it against the wall, but he didn't stop there he started throwing anything that he could get his hands on, every time with more force. Ziva was startled at his actions but couldn't let him just destroy everything much less hurt himself so she walked towards him, "Tony stop" he didn't seem to hear her, or if he did he ignored her, so she moved closer "Tony you have to stop. You're going to hurt yourself." Her words seemed to infuriate him more and he kept destroying things. She got right up to him, grabbed his hand and said "I am sorry. I am sorry she's dead." That made him stop, he turned around, and she could see his eyes full of fury.

She thought he was going to throw something at her, or push her away but what he did left her speeches. He took her face in her hands and kissed her. She was shocked at first, but soon returned his kiss. It wasn't a sweet and romantic kiss, it was full of passion, anger and lust, but she didn't care. He released her; both breathless stared at each other for what seemed like a century. His face was a mix of need and desire as well as rage and Ziva knew what was coming, in fact she was hoping for it. He needed it and she wanted to help him. So she was expecting it when he pushed her against the wall and kissed her again while at the same time trying to take off her shirt.

"I'll do it." He nodded and in a second her shirt was discarded on the floor as was his. They slowly made their way to the bedroom, not letting go of each other, kissing and feeling the other with a desperation that was inhumane.

Once inside the bedroom he pulled her to the bed, kissing every single part of her, he burned inside every time he looked into her eyes and saw the questioning glare but she never said stop so he didn't, he made her his in every possible way, because he needed it, he needed her.

An hour later they were both lying in bed with nothing more than a sheet in between them. Not a word had been spoken; he caressed her face, while a tear trickled down his face, and another and another. Ziva was taken aback by his crying so she did the only thing she could. She put her arms around him and let him cry.

And as she held this grown up man crying like a child in her arms she realized she would rather die that instant than see him hurting like this. Ziva realized she was in love with him.

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**_I know some of you might want to kill me but I had to do it. I'm sorry. I like Kate but I just had to. I hope the Tiva moments at the end of the chapter made up for it. Thanks for reading and please don't forget to review. Thanks_**


	8. Chapter 8

**_First I have to say I am so sorry about the delay but I was out of the country for two weeks, so no computer. Here is the next chapter. Thanks to those who reviewed, I love getting reviews. Thanks for reading and enjoy the chapter._**

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"I am sorry" the whisper of his voice took Ziva out of her trance. She didn't know how long they were there or when he had stopped crying just like she didn't know when the silent tears started rolling down her face but it seemed like hours ago because all she felt now was exhaustion and yet with a few words he brought her back to reality, and it wasn't a reality she liked.

"What are you sorry for?" they were no longer in each other's arms but rather face to face with their hands entwined.

"What happened. I wasn't thinking. I am sorry I forced you." He was cut short when she placed a finger in his mouth.

"What happened was willingly in my part." That seemed to be what he wanted to hear.

"Good." More silence. "Thank you Ziva for being here."

"I am glad I was here and able to help."

"God, I still can't believe she's gone. I just saw her a few hours ago. She was fine and now…"

"It's hard to lose someone you love."

"It is. You know what's the worst part? She shook her head. "I feel guilty."

"Why? You couldn't have done anything."

"I know, what I feel guilty about is different." Her expression must have shown her confusion because he explained. "When McGee called me I just knew something had happened. I thought for sure he was calling me to tell me something happened to you. And then he said no you were okay and for a moment I was so happy and I didn't even ask about Kate until he said her name, and I felt guilty because for a second I forgot about her. How could I forget her Ziva? How could I just abandon her like that?"

Ziva was shocked by his confession. He had actually thought about her before thinking of his partner. She didn't know what to say to him so she just remained quiet while he kept on talking.

"Then I walked in and I guess I still didn't believe it, and before I even looked for her I looked for you. And then I saw her on the floor, full of blood and I could feel the rage growing inside me and next thing I know here I am."

"I am sorry she's dead. It should have been me."

"No, Ziva. It shouldn't. It shouldn't have been anyone. But Kate died doing what she loved. You know her parents always wanted her to be a doctor, but she was a police officer even before she got into the academy. It was in her heart." After another silence he asked the question she was dreading. "What happened?"

She knew it was coming, but it still hit her like a buckle of cold water. She didn't want to lie to Tony. She desperately wanted to tell him the whole truth. But she couldn't for two reasons, one it would mean she wouldn't be able to meet Damian and two he would hate her, and she didn't think she could handle that so she had no option but to lie. "When I came out of the shower there was a man in my room. I didn't even realize he was there until he broke a vase. He had a gun pointed at me, then detective Todd came in, she yelled for him to drop his weapon, there were shots and she was on the floor bleeding."

"Could you identify him?" a little bit of hope grew in Tony.

"No. It was dark and I didn't really look at him." She was cursing herself inside. She hated being in this position but hopefully it would all be over soon.

"It's okay. We'll get him of that I am sure." She nodded not knowing what else to do or say. She also hoped they got him but not before she did. "You should sleep; it has been a hell of a day. I'll sleep on the couch."

He getting out of the bed but she grabbed his arm. "Don't go. Stay here, you need to sleep too." She saw the doubt in his eyes. "It's a big bed." She gave him a small smile. "I'll sleep better." He finally nodded and got back into the position he was before, a little hesitant to touch her. She closed the gap between them, nestling her head in his neck and willed herself to sleep, strangely it didn't take long until they were both sleep.

Ziva woke up a little disoriented; it took a second for everything that had happened to come back. She was in Tony's apartment, except there was no Tony in sight. She heard water, and looked across the room to the semi open door where the sound was coming from; he was obviously taking a shower. She got up from the bed and started look through the apartment wrapped in a sheet. It was small, messy but really welcoming; of course it must have looked before Tony trashed the living room. She went into the kitchen looking to make some coffee; she didn't think she could swallow anything else at the moment. She found the coffeemaker and the coffee and within a few minutes the aroma of fresh coffee filled the whole apartment.

She almost jumped when she heard his voice. "Morning" she turned around and almost dropped her coffee, there he was with his hair wet, a pair of jeans and his bare chest giving her what she could see was a force smile. She had to turn his face away because she was sure she was blushing.

"I made coffee."

"I noticed. You can take a shower if you want." Tony didn't really know how to approach her or what to say. He didn't know how to bring up the events from the night before.

"I would like that." She did want to take a shower but dreaded putting her bloodied clothes back on.

He seemed to be reading her mind. "I have some clothes you might be able to use."

The thought of using Tony's past girlfriend's clothes was not pleasant but better than the alternative. "That would be great. I really don't want to put my clothes back on. I think I am going to burn them."

"Ah, you can't really do that. They are evidence."

"Of course, how could I forget that. The clothes?"

"Yeah." He moved to the hallway closet and took out a pair of jeans and a shirt and handed it to her.

Her curiosity was getting the best of her so she couldn't help but ask. "Your girlfriend's?

"No, Kate's." his voice turned sad

"OH, I am sorry. I shouldn't wear this." She tried returning the folded clothes to him.

"No, it's okay. Wear them. It's not like she'll use them again, right?" he tried to make it sound like a joke but she knew it wasn't, but instead of talking more she took the clothes and went to the bathroom.

Tony had a lot on his mind. It still seemed surreal that Kate was dead. He expected her to call him at any moment and lecture him on mixing business with pleasure; she was always the one to set him straight. He needed to do so much today and yet he felt like sitting in his apartment, his destroyed apartment all day long. Except there was Ziva, he really didn't know what came over him the night before, it must have been the grieve that made him act like that, otherwise he never would have. He felt like he had taken advantage of her and that was the last thing he wanted. Its true he was mad about Kate's death, but the necessity to have her in his arms came more from his desperate need to protect her and keep her away from any harm than from the grieve he was feeling. In some part of his subconscious he had wanted it, but not like that, not the way it happened. He would have wanted to show her how much she meant to him; instead he treated her like a cheap whore. His only hope was that once all of this was over she would forgive him and perhaps give him a chance at something with her. First he had to get this guy; he wouldn't do much to him, he had promised the captain to bring the bastard to him and he would, but a little roughing up before was unavoidable.

The shower stopped and a few minutes later Ziva came out with wet hair and wearing Kate's clothes. "I assume I have to make a statement?"

"Yeah. I just need to finish getting dressed." She nodded as he walked to his room to get a shirt. In a minute he was out, he picked up his gun and badge and they headed out.

The ride was awkward; they kept glancing at each other, neither one knowing what to say. When they arrived at the station he took her to the interrogation room where she had been before and returned five minutes later with Captain Gibbs.

"Ms. David, I am sure you remember me." She nodded. The man was pale, he looked like he hadn't slept at all and his eyes were red with fury. She read his name on one of the files he had placed on the table, Jethro Gibbs. "I need to know exactly what happened."

She repeated the story she had told Tony as her formal statement was being drawn. She hated lying again but it was necessary. When all the questions were answered and the tape recorded was stopped she decided to deliver the message she had from detective Todd.

"You are Jethro correct?" she directed her question to the older man who gave her a questioning look but nodded. "You were involved with detective Todd?" After a little hesitation he nodded again but not without questioning he.

"What does that have to do with the case?"

"Nothing really. It's just that before everyone else got there, when she was still conscious she said 'Tell Jethro I love him.' I thought you should know."

His eyes watered and his face lost some of the rigidness it had, she could tell he was fighting hard against the emotions. "Thank you Ms. David. I just wished I had the chance to tell her too."Tony was beyond shocked. His boss never once before had expressed any of his feelings for Kate in public, much less in their workplace. "DiNozzo I need to see you."

So Tony followed him out of the interrogation room leaving Ziva alone with her thoughts. She needed to get away from Tony and get ready for her meeting the next day. She decided the faster the better, this way less people would be in danger. She was surprised to find the door opened and no officer standing besides it, well she wasn't really a suspect at the moment and Tony trusted her, oh how wrong he was. She looked for him across the busy squad room but didn't see him. She took this as her clue and best opportunity so she simple walked out of the police station without anyone stopping her. Once she was outside she fastened her pace and as soon as she turned the corner she started running, hoping that by the time they realized she wasn't there she would be far enough.

Twenty minutes later Tony was leaving the captain's office. They had gone over the report from the night before as well as discussed a few possibilities. Both men were desperate to catch this man, but sitting in an office under his boss very angry looks wasn't exactly what Tony had in mind, so he was very glad when the meeting ended. He went by his office, picked up some files from his desk and headed for interrogation to get Ziva. When he opened the door, however she wasn't there. He thought maybe she was in the restroom but he didn't find her either. After looking everywhere in the precinct he realized she was gone.

**_I hope you liked it, and the best way to let me know if you did or not is by reviewing. So please take a second to review. Thanks_**


	9. Chapter 9

**_Here's the next chapter in the story. Thanks for reading and thanks to those who reviewed. Enjoy_**

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Ziva knew they would be looking for her, but she needed to be a step ahead of the police, and a step ahead of Tony. When she left her apartment yesterday she had done so without her purse, her phone or any other personal belongings other than the clothes she had on, which were now evidence therefore she needed to stop by her office and the faster she did it the better, she knew they would look there for her so she needed to make her visit as quick as possible.

She walked as fast as she could, she wasn't really tired, and her runs every morning kept her in shape. She made it to the office in less than an hour but not wanting to call any attention to herself went in trough the back door. She made it to the service elevator and up to her office unnoticed. But as soon as she walked in through the doors Marie looked up and almost threw her to the floor with a hug.

"Oh Ziva, I am so glad you're all right. Is unbelievable what happened yesterday. I was so worried about you."

"Thank you Marie. I am okay. Don't worry." She managed to disentangle herself from the woman's hug. "I just need to get some stuff from my office."

"Yeah. Do you want your messages?"

"No, I'll only be in for a short while. I have some things I need to take care of."

"Of course, Ziva."

Ziva got into her office and locked the door. She opened the safe and took every object in there; the money, the set of keys, the papers, and the gun. She grabbed the phone from her desk drawer and headed out. She said goodbye to Marie and hurried into the elevator. She didn't get out on the first floor but kept going to the parking garage. She went straight to the south cornered where a black Mercedes was parked. This was her sister's car, she couldn't make herself sell it or give it away. They had both shared so much in this car and if everything turned out all right she would be returning it to its rightful owner soon.

She got in the car and made her way out of there. She knew she needed to make another stop and then lay low until the next night, but she couldn't help her need to go by her father's house. She needed to because this might be the last time she saw her father. She parked in the back and went in through the garden entrance hoping to avoid as many people as possible. She made it all the way to her father's room without anyone seeing her. Outside the room she took a breath to calm her nerves, she needed to hide the fear that was consuming her. She finally found the courage and opened the door. There was her father in his bed, like always. As soon as he heard the door he looked and a smile took over his face. She loved seeing her father smile.

"Ziva, what a nice surprise. I wasn't expecting you so early." She moved closer, sat on the bed and hugged her father. "Are you all right my dear?"

"I am fine papa. I just didn't feel like working today."

"I understand. Sometimes everything is a little too overwhelming."

She nodded and kissed his hand. "Papa, I love you."

"Ziva, are you telling me the truth? Are you sure you're all right."

"I am fine papa. You don't have to worry about me." Eli wasn't a stupid person. He knew something was going on with his daughter. But there was nothing he could do. Ziva had always been the independent child. Always had her way and went and came as she pleased. There was a time when he thought she was involved in something shady but he was never able to get anything from her. The only thing he could do was make sure she knew he was there for whatever she needed. "Papa I have to go. Don't forget I love you."

She got up and left the room before she broke down in front of her father. She stood outside the room for a couple of minutes gathering herself. She wiped the tears off her face and headed towards the stairs only to stumble against something strong, or rather someone.

"I knew I would find you here."

"Tony!" Damn it she thought she could be out of here before he thought of looking for her at her father's house.

"If you needed to see your father you could have just asked." He sounded mad and she couldn't blame him. "But that's not what the little escapade was about is it?"

"Not here Tony." She was well aware that her father could easily overhear the conversation and become agitated and worried so she took him by the arm and led him to the downstairs room that was used as a library. He allowed her to take him downstairs but his demeanor told her he wasn't happy.

Once they were inside the room she closed the door and not a second later he spoke. "What the heck is going on? Why would you leave the station like that? As if you were hiding something?" She was quiet, too quiet for his taste and had a guilty look in her face. "Is that it Ziva? Are you hiding something from me?"

"Tony I am not hiding anything."

"No, no, no. you are hiding something."

"You know what you're right."

"What is it?"

"I lied to you." She watched his expression saddened and bit her tongue to keep her tears from falling out. Damn it this man made her weak, but she found her strength and continued. "I know the person who's after me."

"Damn it Ziva how do you know him?"

"We were together for several years."

"Together?"

"We were lovers Tony, does that answer your question?"

Tony felt his blood boil inside, how could he have been so wrong about this woman? How could he have let himself fall for her? "I see, you make it a habit of sleeping around. Is that your other profession?"

She walked towards him and slapped him. "You are such an asshole Tony."

He knew it was a low blow and he deserved the hit. "I might be an asshole but you are a liar." He decided that his personal problems would have to wait, he needed to think clear, think as a cop would. "Now tell me everything you know."

"His name is Damian. We met years ago; we went out for a while. That's it."

"That's bullshit Ziva. What's his last name? Where do I find him?"

"I don't know. I already told you all I know."

"Is he the one who killed Kate?" she didn't answer so he moved closer and made her look at him. "Answer me? Is he the man who killed Kate?"

"Yes" her answer came out like a whisper.

"What the hell happened in there? Was he even there to hurt you?"

"No, he wasn't there to hurt me."

"Then why is my partner in the morgue now?"

Ziva wasn't a person who got scared easily but Tony's eyes and his voice had her terrified, she had to fight hard to keep her body from shaking. "It wasn't supposed to be like that Tony. She just came into the room and then I couldn't stop it."

"Oh my god. She did for nothing."

"Tony it wasn't supposed to happen. I tried to stop him but… "

"Shut up. You hear me just shut up. You are the reason she's dead you hear me? You might as well have pulled the trigger yourself. How could I have been so stupid? I'll get him Ziva, have no doubts about that, I will get him and I'll make sure he pays; and you, you I don't know what to say." He was now in her face, pressing her against the bookshelf. "I never thought I would be capable of having rage against anyone, but you made the impossible possible. Congratulations Ziva."

There was rage in his eyes but there was also sadness and defeat, Ziva felt horrible for hurting him like this, she wished the earth would open beneath her and just swallow her, because she was sure her heart couldn't handle any more of his harsh words.

"I have to arrest you. Am I going to have to handcuff you or will you behave?"

"I am sorry Tony." She then swung the wooden statue she had picked up from the bookshelf at his head. She was too fast doing it and he didn't have time to react. He looked at her shocked for a second before his eyes closed and he crumbled to the floor. She caught him before he hit the floor and laid him carefully. She made sure he was breathing, he would probably have a bad headache but he would be okay. She brushed his hair out of his face and kissed him on his forehead. "I am so sorry Tony. It hurts me to hurt you. I promised you if after tomorrow night I am still alive I'll turn myself in. I don't know how, but you made me fall in love with you. Goodbye."

She gave him another kiss, on the lips this time and walked out after removing her father's gun from his safe. She walked out of the house determined not to cry but her heart was working against her, so she allowed herself to cry, after all she had just left the people she loved the most in that house.

**_Please review and let me know what you think._**


	10. Chapter 10

**_Here is an update. I know it has been forever, but I started working in another story and just had to finish it. But I am back and I won't start anything else until I finish this. I hope the readers are still interested. Enjoy._**

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Tony opened his eyes slowly, his head hurt and he was disoriented but only for a second then everything that just happened came back to him. This was the reason Tony didn't like mixing business with pleasure, it was dangerous and it made him stupid. How could he not have seen that Ziva was lying before, how could he have been so naïve? And now Kate was dead.

He slowly got up, he was a little dizzy but it soon passed. He had a nasty bump on his head but there was no blood and the pain was bearable. He needed to think about his next step. While his head was telling him to contact the Captain, tell him everything he knew his heart was telling him differently. Even after everything he still felt the need to protect her, because for some odd reason he still thought she was in danger.

He took out his phone and called McGee, if anyone could find her using a computer it was McGee.

"McGee."

"It's me. I need you to track Ziva David."

"I thought she was with you."

"Obviously she's not. Find her and let me know."

"Okay boss."

"McGee, don't tell anyone what you're doing."

"Okay." Tony thought the other man didn't sound too convinced but he ignored it, he knew McGee wouldn't tell anyone.

He hanged up and headed to his car. He would work his contacts and see if any of them knew this Damian.

However, after spending the whole day out on the streets he still hadn't made any progress. He headed back to the precinct hoping not to find the captain there. He didn't want to lie to him but he couldn't tell him what he knew because he simply didn't know enough. Luckily the captain's office was dark and his car wasn't in the parking lot.

"McGee tell me you got something."

"Nothing yet. She obviously doesn't have her car, none of her credit cards have been use, neither her phone so it's pretty much impossible. Keep digging and find me something."

"Why exactly isn't she with you? Shouldn't we tell the captain? Is she in trouble?"

"I don't know, I truly don't. But for now keep it to yourself."

"Whatever you say boss."

"Where's the captain?"

"Huh, he left about an hour ago. I think he went to see Kate's parents."

"Right." He hadn't even thought about that. Now he felt worse, he was failing his partner because of Ziva. "I'll be in my office going over some stuff, let me know the minute you find anything."

He locked himself in his office and started going over the surveillance files his team had accumulated during the last months. It was obvious that this Damian person was tied to the smuggling; he just didn't think this was why Ziva was dealing with him. There had to be something in these files. He spent hours looking through the pictures and information, hoping to find some type of clue.

Next he knew he was opening his eyes to find the squad full of activity under the daylight. Apparently he had fallen asleep while going over the files. He adjusted his eyes to the sunlight filtering through the window. He really felt like crap. He left his office to find McGee in the same spot he left him the night before, only he was snoring with his head on top of his computer keyboard.

"McGee."

"Nothing yet Tony."

"Yeah, I see that. Listen I am going home to grab a shower and I'll be back later."

"Okay."

"You do the same and get something to eat."

"Thanks boss."

Twenty minutes later he had taken a hot shower and felt much better. He made himself a sandwich and some coffee and headed out to the streets again hoping to find some information. He had the same bad luck as the day before and by 7:00pm he was so frustrated that he almost shot a rookie cop who got on his way while he was parking outside the station.

"McGee you better tell me you have something."

He didn't receive an answer just a shake of the head. Tony's frustration just grew. Another day and no information yet. Once again he was in his office looking through mug files hoping a face would just jump out at him.

All of the sudden his cell phone rang and he answer it without checking who it was.

"DiNozzo."

"Tony."

He was up in a second, his mind already running through the different scenarios. She sounded desperate, her voice merely a whisper. "Ziva, where are you? Are you hurt?"

"I am sorry for everything. I love you."

"Zivaaaaaaa." He yelled into his phone but the call had already ended. Desperately he got out. "McGee, track the call that just came in my phone."

"Tony was it Ms. David."

"Now, McGee, now. Tell me where she is."

**_Please take a second and let me know if there's anyone still interested and if I should finish the story or not. Thanks_**


	11. Chapter 11

**Here is another chapter. Thanks for reading and a special thanks to all those who reviewed. Enjoy the chapter.**

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"Okay, here we go." McGee pointed in his computer screen to show Tony the location.

"Good work. Remember no one finds out about this." He said and headed to the door keys in hands.

He drove like a maniac, desperately driving towards the piers. He still didn't know what he was going to do once she was in front of him, the only thing he knew was that he needed to see her again, he would figure out the rest from there.

Finally he arrived. He parked his jeep far enough to be inconspicuous and started walking the deserted piers. He had a bad feeling about this, so his gun was in his hands, ready to fire if needed. His eyes scanned the dark place looking for Ziva, hopefully she hadn't left the place after calling him. As he approached pier 23 he heard shouting and one of the voices was Ziva's. He moved closer but stayed hidden; he would learn all he could.

"I didn't think you would make it." He didn't recognize the voice of the man and yet he felt an instant dislike to him.

"I said I would." That was indisputably Ziva. He felt a strong relief at knowing she was okay.

"Where's the money?"

"Where's my sister?"

Sister? Tony was really confused; he thought Ziva's sister had died in an accident.

"Money first."

"I don't trust you Damian."

"There was a time when you trusted me with your life amore."

Tony was able to see from his hiding place as the man, who he know knew was Damian, got closer to Ziva and attempted to touch her face, only to have her push it back.

"That was my mistake, trusting you, but I'll never make the same mistake again."

"Ziva, Ziva. You haven't changed at all, so full of spirit. That's why you always satisfied me in bed."

Tony had to physically contain himself from coming out of his hiding place and killing the man with his bare hands, but he did because he realized there was a lot more going on than he thought.

"You never satisfied me."

The man looked at her for a few moments and then busted out laughing. "That's exactly what I mean. Now give me the money or your dear Tali dies, and this time for real."

Ziva walked back a couple of paces and pulled a briefcase from behind some gas tanks. "Here. Now my sister."

"I trust I won't have to count it." He didn't receive an answer from her; instead he opened the briefcase and touched the money. "You see my dear; I told you we could do business."

"Damian!" Ziva's voice had a dangerous tone.

"Very well. I see you want to cut our meeting short." He whistled and two men came out of the shadows holding a teenage girl In between them.

As soon as they were close enough to Ziva and Damian, the girl tried to run to her sister but the men stopped her.

"Tali are you okay?" The girl didn't answer, only nodded. "Damian you have the money. Now let her go."

"It's not that easy darling."

Ziva knew it wouldn't be. "What do you want?"

"You know too much and I can't risk it."

"I haven't said anything what makes you think it'll change now."

"Your boyfriend the cop."

"Leave him out of this." She practically yelled.

"See what I mean dear. He obviously means something to you."

"You leave him out of this Damian. This is between you and me."

"You are right. It is." He signaled to his men to release the girl. She immediately ran to Ziva.

"Tali, you leave and go straight home." She handed her the car keys.

"Not without you."

"Leave now." Ziva gave Tali a look that told her not to question her order. The young girl hugged Ziva and hurried away. Ziva waited until Tali was no longer in sight and then turned to Damian. "What now?"

"Ziva, Ziva. I really wish you hadn't left our little family. It's not going to be easy killing you."

Ziva knew this would happen. She knew there was no way she was getting out of here alive. "Just do it."

A shot was heard a moment later, but she felt no pain. She opened her eyes to see Damian sprawled on the floor bleeding. Immediately more bullets started flying. She grabbed Damian's gun out of his hands just a moment before someone grabbed her and pulled her behind some crates. She thought about fighting for a moment but then recognize him by his smell. It was Tony. "What are you doing here?"

"Saving your ass again."

"I didn't ask you to come."

"Yeah, well I have a tendency to go after suspects that hit me in the head and run."

"If you didn't come you would have gotten your suspect back anyways."

"I didn't want to get you back in a body bag." For a moment they let the emotion of his words envelop them but the continuous sounds of bullets flying brought them back to reality. Apparently there had been more than two of Damian's men and they were now pinned where they couldn't escape. "We gotta move. I am going to cover you and you run like the devil. Here are the keys to my jeep and my phone. You get out of here, dial McGee's number and tell him where to send back up."

"I am not leaving you here."

"Will you just listen to me for once."

"No. This is my mess."

"Damn it." He looked around him, trying to find a way for both of them to get out of here alive or at least a way to convince her to go. "Did you mean it?"

"What?"

"Did you mean it? That you love me?"

She took a moment to answer him. "Yes. I don't know how or why but yes."

"Then do as I say."

"No. I won't."

With a sudden impulse he grabbed her face with both his hands and brought his lips down to hers. In that moments sparks flew and he forgot where he was, all that mattered was kissing her.

She was taken by surprise by his kiss, but soon returned it. She had been wanted to kiss him ever since the last time they kissed and she wasn't about to lose an opportunity.

A bullet hitting just above their heads brought them back to reality.

"Okay, we both go." He took her hand with his free one and they started moving, firing back only when necessary and ducking behind everything they could find.

They finally made it to his car. Since she still had his keys in her hands she just got in the driver seat and drove away. He grabbed his cell phone and dialed McGee's, he requested the back up.

"Police station I assume." She knew what was coming. When she didn't receive an answer she turned to look at him. His eyes were closed, his face was pale and he had a huge blood stain in his shirt. How did he get shot and she didn't notice? Why didn't he say anything? "Tony." She nudged him in his shoulder but he didn't move. "Tony, come on. Don't do this." She nudged him again, even hitting him a little bit but she still received no response. "Tony you can't be dead."

* * *

**Did you like it? Hate it? Do you want Tony to survive? Let me know**

**Thanks for reading.**


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